Detection of frequent and dispersed invariants

ABSTRACT

A scalable method and apparatus that detects frequent and dispersed invariants is disclosed. More particularly, the application discloses a system that can simultaneously track frequency rates and dispersion criteria of unknown invariants. In other words, the application discloses an invariant detection system implemented in hardware (and/or software) that allows detection of invariants (e.g., byte sequences) that are highly prevalent (e.g., repeating with a high frequency) and dispersed (e.g., originating from many sources and destined to many destinations).

BACKGROUND

The amount of data available to information seekers has grownastronomically, whether as the result of the proliferation ofinformation sources on the Internet, or as a result of private effortsto organize business information within a company, or any of a varietyof other causes. The need to be able to securely access informationand/or data has increased as well. The proliferation of data andexpanding number of users has created more avenues for computer-relatedattacks (e.g., viruses, worms, Trojan horses . . . ).

Network viruses and worms are an ever growing threat to security oftoday's Internet-connected hosts and networks. A worm can be describedas a destructive program that automatically replicates itself throughoutdisk and memory using up the computer's resources and possibly shuttingdown the system. Generally, a virus refers to malicious software thatcan infect a computer. After virus code is written, it is often buriedwithin or otherwise attached to an existing program. Once a host programis executed, the virus is activated and attaches copies of itself toother programs in the system. Infected programs automatically copy thevirus to other programs.

Because one characteristic of the Internet is unrestricted access, it isrelatively easy for worms to propagate across networks thereby causingmass destruction. Most often, by the time a worm is detected, damage hasalready occurred. Similarly, today's efforts to mitigate damage from anddetection of worms have been most often directed to known worms andviruses. A need exists to effectively and accurately detect unknownviruses and worms that plague today's computer networks and systems.

SUMMARY

The following presents a simplified summary of the application in orderto provide a basic understanding of some aspects of the application.This summary is not an extensive overview of the technology. It is notintended to identify key/critical elements of the technology or todelineate the scope of the technology. Its sole purpose is to presentsome concepts of the application in a simplified form as a prelude tothe more detailed description that is presented later.

The technology disclosed and claimed herein, in one aspect thereof,comprises a scalable method and apparatus to detect frequent anddispersed invariants. More particularly, the application discloses asystem that can concurrently track frequency rates and dispersioncriteria of invariants. In one aspect, the scalable system can operateat line rates in excess of 5 Gbps. It is to be understood that thefunctionality of the technology can operate at a high line rate (e.g.,in excess of 5 Gbps) while using an order of magnitude less memory thanconventional systems. Many conventional antivirus systems rely uponknown signatures of viruses, worms, and the like in order to facilitatedetection thereof. The subject matter of the application facilitatesdetecting unknown and potentially harmful code detecting frequent anddispersed invariants that are typically associated with undesired code.

In other words, in one aspect, the application is directed to aninvariant detection system implemented in hardware that allows detectionof invariants (e.g., byte sequences) that are highly prevalent (e.g.,repeating with a high frequency), and dispersed (e.g., originating frommany sources and destined to many destinations). The system alsoincludes various techniques for sampling traffic streams and dynamicthresholding to counter various denial of service attacks that can bemounted against it. In a particular embodiment, the technology can beimplemented within a router or other network device. In operation, therouter or device can be configured to mirror all in-bound and out-boundtraffic to the subject system which can detect, monitor, report, blockand/or remove (e.g., quarantine) packets that contain invariants.Moreover, the detection of frequent and dispersed invariants can beimplemented by a third-party service or a stand-alone product inaccordance with aspects of the application. Similarly, it is to beunderstood that the subject matter of the application can be employed inportable devices such as cell phones, smartphones, pocket computers,personal data assistants (PDAs) or the like.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, certainillustrative aspects of the technology are described herein inconnection with the following description and the annexed drawings.These aspects are indicative, however, of but a few of the various waysin which the principles of the technology can be employed and thesubject application is intended to include all such aspects and theirequivalents. Other advantages and features of the application willbecome apparent from the following detailed description of theapplication when considered in conjunction with the drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a system that facilitates detection of frequent anddispersed invariants in accordance with an aspect of the subject matterof the application.

FIG. 2 illustrates an alternative block diagram of an invariantdetection system in accordance with an aspect of the subject matter ofthe application.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example of a signature calculation for a stringlength equal to 4 in accordance with an aspect of the subject matter ofthe application.

FIG. 4 illustrates a signature generation technique in accordance withan aspect of the subject matter of the application.

FIG. 5 illustrates a white list filter in accordance with an aspect ofthe subject matter of the application.

FIG. 6 illustrates a DT1 dispersion table in accordance with an aspectof the subject matter of the application.

FIG. 7 illustrates a DT2 dispersion table in accordance with an aspectof the subject matter of the application.

FIG. 8 illustrates a biasing of the probability of adding input trafficto the DT1 dispersion table based upon traffic type in accordance withan aspect of the subject matter of the application.

FIG. 9 illustrates an architectural diagram of the interaction betweenthe white list and the DT1 and DT2 dispersion tables in accordance withan aspect of the subject matter of the application.

FIG. 10 illustrates a block diagram of the functionality of a DT1dispersion table in accordance with an aspect of the subject matter ofthe application.

FIG. 11 illustrates an exemplary flow chart of procedures thatfacilitate reporting an invariant in accordance with an aspect of thesubject matter of the application.

FIG. 12 illustrates a block diagram of a computer operable to executethe disclosed architecture.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The technology is now described with reference to the drawings, whereinlike reference numerals are used to refer to like elements throughout.In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerousspecific details are set forth in order to provide a thoroughunderstanding of the subject application. It may be evident, however,that the technology can be practiced without these specific details. Inother instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in blockdiagram form in order to facilitate describing the technology.

As used in this application, the terms “component” and “system” areintended to refer to a computer-related entity, either hardware, acombination of hardware and software, software, or software inexecution. For example, a component can be, but is not limited to being,a process running on a processor, a processor, an object, an executable,a thread of execution, a program, and/or a computer. By way ofillustration, both an application running on a server and the server canbe a component. One or more components can reside within a processand/or thread of execution, and a component can be localized on onecomputer and/or distributed between two or more computers.

Referring initially to the drawings, FIG. 1 illustrates a system 100that can facilitate detection of previously “unknown” worms and/orviruses. Generally, system 100 can include a receiving component 102 anda signature learning block (SLB) component 104. In operation, thereceiving component 102 can access packet data thereby communicatingwith the SLB component 104 to identify worms and/or viruses.

As will be understood upon a review of the figures that follow, thesystem 100 described herein can employ a “content sifting” techniquethat addresses the problem of detecting unknown viruses and worms. This“content sifting” technique can create a unique signature andsubsequently track instances of that signature in order to identifyunknown worms. Generally, the “content sifting” technique is based uponthe inherent behavior of a worm. First, the technique leverages that acertain part of a worm code is invariant. And secondly, the system 100utilizes the characteristic that traffic generated by the worm usuallyoriginates and is destined for many different hosts.

As such, the system 100 can employ algorithmic techniques to establishthe frequency (e.g., number of occurrences) of each substring of acertain length in the payload of each packet. The algorithm alsofacilitates approximating a list of all source and destination IPaddresses for every such substring. It is to be understood thatsubstrings that occur very often and are associated with many differentsource and destination addresses are good candidates for a wormsignature.

In accordance with the algorithms, approximations can be used todecrease the memory and processor (CPU) requirements of the algorithmssuch that they can handle significant traffic in real-time. However,with respect to conventional systems, there is a trade-off betweenavailable memory and CPU speed of detecting a worm.

The subject application describes a system and methodology that candetect previously unknown viruses and worms based upon the two inherentcharacteristics stated supra, frequency of the invariant and targetdestination identification. In operation, the subject application, inone aspect thereof, can automate a signature generation process makingit possible to operate at high line rates (e.g., gigabits per second(Gbps)). Thus, maximum security coverage can be accomplished.

To identify threats, algorithmic techniques are employed that canidentify invariants (the invariant could be any contiguous byte-sequenceat any position in the packet) that are frequent, and then determine thedispersion for each one of the invariants. This is particularly usefulif one is interested in detecting all types of large scale attacks, forexample, worms, spam etc.

However, if one were to limit their focus to essentially detectingnetwork worms, then an optimization to consider would be to measure bothfrequency and dispersion simultaneously, as it is only when bothconditions hold true (the invariant is prevalent and the invariant isdispersed) that one may classify the invariant as belonging to a newworm outbreak. Here, the subject system 100 can simultaneously trackfrequency and dispersion through the disclosure of a cachingdata-structure maintained by the SLB component 104.

This caching data-structure can concurrently count the number of times aparticular invariant has been seen as well as track the number of uniquesources and destinations using bitmap counters. It is to be appreciatedthat the basic data-structure can be used to detect a wide variety ofbehaviors. For instance, the data-structure can be employed to detectmisbehaving hosts or to learn content signatures. In a specific example,a misbehaving host refers to one that initiates connections rapidly to alarge number of disparate hosts. In this situation, the Source IPaddress can serve as the invariant and the counting mechanisms in thedispersion table can be used to count the number of events. As well,bitmap counters can be employed to count the number of distinct hosts towhich the connection attempts are being initiated. Details of thesetracking mechanisms will be better understood upon a review of thefigures that follow.

The data-structure can facilitate utilization of an algorithm (e.g.,least recently used-like (LRU) algorithm) that cycles through allinvariants that are currently being tracked. Depending upon frequencyand dispersion rate of the invariant, the system 100 can elect towhite-list (e.g., ignore the invariant in the future) or further trackit utilizing more state for longer periods of time.

In accordance with aspects, various sampling methods are used at theinput point into the data-structure. The techniques used can ensure thatthe invariants that are sampled (e.g., selected) are spread across time,protocols and packets. It will be understood that these techniquesprevent potential cases where attackers could mount denial-of-serviceattacks against the system 100 by sending large streams of innocuoustraffic.

It is further to be appreciated that the technology can be employed todetect and/or track invariants located most anywhere within a datapacket. For instance, the functionalities described herein can beemployed to detect invariants in a packet header as well as a packetpayload. Moreover, these techniques can be implemented in hardware aswell as computer-implemented software applications.

Although aspects of the application described herein are directed to thedetection of network worms the functionality can be employed to identifyother interesting invariants. For example, in addition to detection ofworms, the functionality can be employed to enable detection of spam,P2P (Peer to Peer) protocols, etc.

Additionally, although aspects described herein are directed to aspecific size invariant, in accordance with the system 100, it is not arequirement that the lengths of the invariants be pre-programmed. Forexample, a user can select length at run time. With respect to detectingpolymorphic types of attacks, one can consider reducing length and thenaggregating smaller invariants into larger signatures in a secondarystep. Effectively, the technology can be used to identify invariants ofmost any length as well as variable length in certain situations.

Turning now to FIG. 2, an alternative block diagram of system 100 isshown. More particularly, as shown in FIG. 2, SLB component can includemultiple sub-components. These sub-components can be a signaturegeneration component 202, a value sampler component 204, a white listcomponent 206, a content dispersion table component 208 and an outputbuffer component 210. While these components (202-210) are illustratedinclusive of the SLB component, it is to be understood and appreciatedthat a subset the components can be located remotely without departingfrom the spirit and scope of this application and claims appendedhereto.

In accordance with the system 100, “Signature Learning” uses the factthat anomalous traffic (e.g., worms) typically displays contentrepetition and address dispersion (e.g., the number of hostssending/receiving content will grow over time). One key function of theSLB component 102 is to detect the most prevalent invariant stringswithin the payload of packets, track the dispersion of these invariants,and report those that are characterized by high levels of dispersion.

As illustrated, this functionality can be logically distributed acrossthe following five components: the signature generation component 202for creating content/header signatures, the value sampler component 204for reducing downstream workloads, the white list component 206 foreliminating processing on unwanted signatures, the content dispersiontable 208 for sifting out the most prevalent signatures and tracking thespreading behavior of these signatures, and the output buffer component210 for storing the packets and header information while the SLB 104 isprocessing them. Each of these functional units or components isdescribed in greater detail infra.

Referring first to the signature generation component 202, thiscomponent can calculate a hash across a programmable-length, slidingwindow of the payload of the packet and a header block which calculatesa source/destination hash value based on the packet header fields.

In operation, in one embodiment, the signature generator component 202can receive the packet payload data from the output buffer component 210accompanied by a valid indication, for example, Start of Packet and anEnd of Packet indication for the final bytes in a packet, and a packetlength. For each StringLen strings within a packet, the signaturegenerator 202 can generate an X-bit content signature based upon adesired hash function. In one aspect, an n-bit content signature can begenerated based upon a selected hash function.

The signature generation component 202 can include a header extractionblock (not shown) that receives masked header fields for each packetfrom the output buffer component 210 and generates a Source IP Hash anda Destination IP Hash. The Source and Destination IP Hash values areformed by scrambling the bits and then taking the hash value across allbits of the two scrambled, masked header values. This signaturegeneration is illustrated in FIG. 4.

A source port and destination port can be extracted directly from thepacket header by the output buffer 210 based upon programmable offsetvalues into the header. The packet header is sent to the value samplingcomponent 204 where they are correlated to the content signatures foreach packet.

Turning now to a discussion of the value sampler component 204, thevalue sampler 204 can employ a FIFO (first-in first-out) structure forstoring the content signature and the header information associated withthose signatures. As well, the value sampler 204 can employ samplinglogic to determine which signature should be written into the FIFOstructure.

For each packet, the value sampler 204 receives the source/destinationsignature, the source/destination port data, and the protocol stack ID.The signatures and header information are written into the FIFOstructure based on value sampling on the signature values and theposition of the signatures within the packet. Signatures are receivedfrom the signature generation block 202. A fixed number of randomlyselected bits of each signature which is received is ANDed with aprogrammable value sampling and compared to a programmable value. If thevalues match, the signature is considered to pass value sampling.

The white list 206 acts as a filter to remove from the traffic streamthose “known” signatures which should not be processed by the contentdispersion table 208. In one aspect, the white list 206 can be a filterin which entries are added and deleted via an external system. It is tobe understood that the external system can include hardware, software orfirmware. The white list 206 reads signatures from the value samplerFIFO structure. Each time a signature is received from the value samplerFIFO structure, serial reads are done to the white list memory. Thereads can be accomplished based upon addresses within the signature asshown in FIG. 5. In operation, the filter can determine whether or notto pass the signature to the content dispersion table 208.

In accordance with the application, the content dispersion table 208employs two levels of hierarchy, the L1 dispersion table (DT1) and theL2 dispersion table (DT2). These dispersion tables are shown in FIGS. 6and 7 respectively. The DT1 of FIG. 6 filters out the most prevalentsignatures with a minimal level of dispersion before they are added tothe DT2 of FIG. 7, which tracks the spreading behavior of signatures ata fine grained level.

Only if a signature displays a minimum level of dispersion is it allowedinto the larger DT2 . The DT2 then tracks the signature over a longerperiod of time with more fine-grained tracking of the source anddestination dispersion counts and is responsible for reporting thesignatures to the director. The data structures which are used by theDT1 and DT2 are shown in FIG. 6 and FIG. 7.

As illustrated in FIG. 7, the DT2 is organized with a first-stage hashbased storage and a second-stage CAM (content addressable memory) basedstorage which is used for overflow, for example, if there are collisionsin the hash when trying to add a signature.

When a signature is received from the white list 206, it issimultaneously looked up in the DT1 CAM, the DT2 SRAM-based hash, andthe DT2 CAM. It is to be understood that only one entry in any of thesestructures can match the signature. Accordingly, an error is reported ifmultiple entries match.

The two CAMs (DT1 and DT2) directly return a match result if thesignature is stored in the CAMs. The hash check is accomplished in twostages. The first stage reads the entry at the location specified by afixed subset of bits within the signature. If the entry is valid and thesignature stored in the entry is equal to the remainder of the contentsignature, a match is returned. The second stage reads the entry at thelocation specified by an independent subset of bits within the contentsignature. If the entry is valid and the signature stored in the entryis equal to the remainder of the content signature, a match is returned.

If a match is found in the DT1 CAM, the following actions are employed:

-   -   The Hit Count, Source Array, Destination Array for the entry are        read in from the SRAM;    -   The Hit Count is incremented by 1;    -   The bits in the Source and Destination Array are set based on        predefined bits in the source and destination IP hashes; and    -   The Hit Count and the number of bits set in the Source and        Destination Array are compared to programmable thresholds, and        if all the threshold criteria are met, a signal is sent to the        DT2 to create a new entry for the signature and the signature is        removed from the DT1 CAM.

If a match occurs in either of the DT2 structures, the following actionsare employed:

-   -   The remaining content dispersion table fields are read in for        the entry from the SRAM;    -   The Hit Count is incremented by 1;    -   The update time is set to the current timestamp;    -   The update bit is set to 1;    -   The source/destination arrays are updated based on the source        and destination hashes; and    -   If the number of bits in the source/destination arrays are        greater than or equal to a programmable threshold the        source/destination scaling factors are incremented and the bit        arrays are cleared.

Turning now to FIG. 8, if a match is not found in the DT1 or DT2, theDT1 can determine whether or not to create a new entry for thesignature. In an aspect, the signature has to pass several tests beforeit is added to the DT1. One goal of these tests is to ensure that thesignatures are selected across a wide range of IP addresses, servicesand distributed over time. An example test would be to value samplebased upon the Source and Destination IP address. To execute this test,the aspect passes the Source and Destination IP address through a hashfunction and chooses to select the signature based on the value ofcertain bits in the hash result. The bits selected and the valuecompared against can be programmed at a fine granularity, for example itis possible to have different bits to compare and the value to compareagainst for every port and so on.

Continuing with the example, the second DT1 sampling test is based onlinear feedback shift register (LFSR). The LFSR value is ANDed with aprogrammable mask and compared to a programmable value. If these valuesmatch, the DT1 attempts to add the signature at the location pointed toby the head pointer. If the old entry is not valid or the current timeminus the init timestamp for the entry is greater than the minimal DT1lifespan a new entry will be created. A new entry is initialized bywriting the new signature into the CAM at the position pointed to by thehead pointer, and writing the corresponding hit count, source array,destination array, and init time in the SRAM.

When a new signature is written into the DT1 CAM, overwriting a validold entry, the fields of the old entry will be compared to the whitelist threshold registers and if the thresholds are met, a report for thesignature is sent to the director to potentially white list the entry(this would occur for entries with high hit counts and low dispersioncounts). If on the other hand, the old entry does not meet the minimumlifespan criteria, the head pointer will be incremented and the newsignature will not be added. FIG. 9 illustrates an architectural diagramof the interaction of the white list 206 and the DT1 and DT2 tables inaccordance with an aspect of the subject matter of the application. FIG.10 further illustrates a block flow diagram of the functionality of theDT1 table in accordance with an aspect of the application.

While, for purposes of simplicity of explanation, the one or moremethodologies shown herein, e.g., in the form of a flow diagram, areshown and described as a series of acts, it is to be understood andappreciated that the subject application is not limited by the order ofacts, as some acts may, in accordance with the application, occur in adifferent order and/or concurrently with other acts from that shown anddescribed herein. For example, those skilled in the art will understandand appreciate that a methodology could alternatively be represented asa series of interrelated states or events, such as in a state diagram.Moreover, not all illustrated acts may be required to implement amethodology in accordance with the application.

As illustrated in FIG. 10, if a match is not found in the DT2, it waitsfor a signal from the DT1 to inform whether or not to create a newentry. If this signal is received from the DT1, a new entry is createdprovided that there is available space in the hash or the CAM. If theentry in the Hash is not marked valid or meets the timeout criteria (asdescribed below), an entry is created there; otherwise it creates theentry in the CAM provided there is an available address.

In operation, a new entry is created in the following manner:

-   -   Valid bit is set to 1;    -   New signature is written into CAM or SRAM;    -   If writing to SRAM Hash, The H1/H2 bit is set depending on if        the first or second hash function is used (0=first, 1=second);    -   Hit Count is set to 1;    -   Update time and initialization time are set to the current        timestamp;    -   Update bit is set to 1;    -   The source/destination arrays are updated based on the source        and destination hashes; and    -   The source/destination scaling factors are set to 0.

If the CAM is completely full or there are no entries available in thefree-list and the hash entry is being used by another signature thatcannot be removed, a collision counter will be incremented and nofurther action will be taken.

The entry may be removed from the DT2 Dispersion Table if any of thefollowing criteria are met:

-   -   Entry is marked as reported and the length of time since the        last update has exceeded the report inactive timeout period;    -   The entry's RPT indication is not set and any of the following        are true:        -   the time since the last update has exceed the inactive            threshold;        -   the number of intervals that the entry has been in existence            for multiplied by rate threshold is greater than the hit            count; or        -   the lifespan of the entry is greater than the active            threshold and the source count AND destination counts are            less than a minimum threshold.

The content dispersion block contains one background task that keeps alist of free addresses that can be used for new signature storage in theDT2 CAM. This task will add entries which meet the timeout criteria andremove entries when CAM updates occur.

Software can be responsible for periodically reading each entry in theDT2 and reporting the latest counter values. The software can havebackdoor read access to the DT2. When the software issues a read to eachentry, this will cause the update bit in the entry to be invalidated.The software then reads the LSBs of the entry and checks to see if theentry is marked as valid, has been reported and has the update bit set.If these three conditions are met, the entire entry is read and acounter update report packet is sent by the software.

The final responsibility for the DT2 is to inform the output buffer 210when the end of packet for the current packet has arrived. If asignature is the last signature of the packet, the end of packetindication will be forwarded to the output buffer to indicate that thepacket can be removed from the output buffer FIFO.

Turning now to a discussion of the output buffer 210, the firstresponsibility of the output buffer 210 is to store the packet data andheader fields in separate FIFO structures until the packet can be sentdownstream. The output buffer 210 also has a separate internal packetbuffer which will store the entire packet while it is being processed bythe other SLB modules and will either drop the packet or forward it tothe CPU when an end of packet indication is received from the DT2 block.

The second function of the output buffer 210 is to determine whether ornot each packet will be processed with respect to the SLB block. If itis determined that the packet should not be processed by the SLB block,the packet will not be stored in the output buffer 210 internal packetFIFO, but will still be forwarded. The final responsibility of theoutput buffer 210 is to receive report indications from the DT2dispersion table. If a packet is market to be reported, a report packetheader is generated by the output buffer 210 containing the messagelength, signature offset, and the signature location within the DT2.This report packet header, followed by the entire packets is send to theCPU packet buffer.

FIG. 11 illustrates a methodology of identifying and reporting aninvariant in accordance with an aspect of the application. At 1102, adata packet, or group of data packets is received. As illustrated by thedecision loop at 1104, it is to be understood and appreciated that thedata packet passes if no invariant is found to be present.

At 1106, a signature can be created for the invariant. The signature canbe generated as described in the aforementioned Related Applications,which are incorporated herein by reference. It will be appreciated thatthis signature enables tracking of the frequency and dispersion of theinvariant.

As illustrated, the invariant occurrence frequency and dispersioncriteria can be tracked at 1108 and 1110 respectively. As described ingreater detail supra, the subject system employs a two-level dispersiontable, DT1 and DT2, that concurrent tracks the occurrence frequency anddispersion criteria. A decision is made at 1112 if a frequency ordispersion threshold is met.

If a threshold is not met at 1112, the process returns to 1108 and 1110to continue tracking the suspect invariant. On the other hand, if athreshold is met, the system can report the invariant at 1114.Similarly, the technology can quarantine, block, remove and/or cleansethe system of the suspect invariant.

Referring now to FIG. 12, there is illustrated a block diagram of acomputer operable to execute the disclosed invariant detectionarchitecture. In order to provide additional context for various aspectsof the subject application, FIG. 12 and the following discussion areintended to provide a brief, general description of a suitable computingenvironment 1200 in which the various aspects of the application can beimplemented. While the technology has been described above in thegeneral context of computer-executable instructions that may run on oneor more computers, those skilled in the art will recognize that thesubject matter also can be implemented in combination with other programmodules and/or as a combination of hardware and software.

Generally, program modules include routines, programs, components, datastructures, etc., that perform particular tasks or implement particularabstract data types. Moreover, those skilled in the art will appreciatethat the inventive methods can be practiced with other computer systemconfigurations, including single-processor or multiprocessor computersystems, minicomputers, mainframe computers, as well as personalcomputers, hand-held computing devices, microprocessor-based orprogrammable consumer electronics, and the like, each of which can beoperatively coupled to one or more associated devices.

The illustrated aspects of the application may also be practiced indistributed computing environments where certain tasks are performed byremote processing devices that are linked through a communicationsnetwork. In a distributed computing environment, program modules can belocated in both local and remote memory storage devices.

A computer typically includes a variety of computer-readable media.Computer-readable media can be any available media that can be accessedby the computer and includes both volatile and nonvolatile media,removable and non-removable media. By way of example, and notlimitation, computer-readable media can comprise computer storage mediaand communication media. Computer storage media includes both volatileand nonvolatile, removable and non-removable media implemented in anymethod or technology for storage of information such ascomputer-readable instructions, data structures, program modules orother data. Computer storage media includes, but is not limited to, RAM,ROM, EEPROM, flash memory or other memory technology, CD-ROM, digitalversatile disk (DVD) or other optical disk storage, magnetic cassettes,magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices,or any other medium which can be used to store the desired informationand which can be accessed by the computer.

Communication media typically embodies computer-readable instructions,data structures, program modules or other data in a modulated datasignal such as a carrier wave or other transport mechanism, and includesany information delivery media. The term “modulated data signal” means asignal that has one or more of its characteristics set or changed insuch a manner as to encode information in the signal. By way of example,and not limitation, communication media includes wired media such as awired network or direct-wired connection, and wireless media such asacoustic, RF, infrared and other wireless media. Combinations of the anyof the above should also be included within the scope ofcomputer-readable media.

With reference again to FIG. 12, the exemplary environment 1200 forimplementing various aspects of the application includes a computer1202, the computer 1202 including a processing unit 1204, a systemmemory 1206 and a system bus 1208. The system bus 1208 couples systemcomponents including, but not limited to, the system memory 1206 to theprocessing unit 1204. The processing unit 1204 can be any of variouscommercially available processors. Dual microprocessors and othermulti-processor architectures may also be employed as the processingunit 1204.

The system bus 1208 can be any of several types of bus structure thatmay further interconnect to a memory bus (with or without a memorycontroller), a peripheral bus, and a local bus using any of a variety ofcommercially available bus architectures. The system memory 1206includes read-only memory (ROM) 1210 and random access memory (RAM)1212. A basic input/output system (BIOS) is stored in a non-volatilememory 1210 such as ROM, EPROM, EEPROM, which BIOS contains the basicroutines that help to transfer information between elements within thecomputer 1202, such as during start-up. The RAM 1212 can also include ahigh-speed RAM such as static RAM for caching data.

The computer 1202 further includes an internal hard disk drive (HDD)1214 (e.g., EIDE, SATA), which internal hard disk drive 1214 may also beconfigured for external use in a suitable chassis (not shown), amagnetic floppy disk drive (FDD) 1216, (e.g., to read from or write to aremovable diskette 1218) and an optical disk drive 1220, (e.g., readinga CD-ROM disk 1222 or, to read from or write to other high capacityoptical media such as the DVD). The hard disk drive 1214, magnetic diskdrive 1216 and optical disk drive 1220 can be connected to the systembus 1208 by a hard disk drive interface 1224, a magnetic disk driveinterface 1226 and an optical drive interface 1228, respectively. Theinterface 1224 for external drive implementations includes at least oneor both of Universal Serial Bus (USB) and IEEE 1394 interfacetechnologies. Other external drive connection technologies are withincontemplation of the subject application.

The drives and their associated computer-readable media providenonvolatile storage of data, data structures, computer-executableinstructions, and so forth. For the computer 1202, the drives and mediaaccommodate the storage of any data in a suitable digital format.Although the description of computer-readable media above refers to aHDD, a removable magnetic diskette, and a removable optical media suchas a CD or DVD, it should be appreciated by those skilled in the artthat other types of media which are readable by a computer, such as zipdrives, magnetic cassettes, flash memory cards, cartridges, and thelike, may also be used in the exemplary operating environment, andfurther, that any such media may contain computer-executableinstructions for performing the methods of the application.

A number of program modules can be stored in the drives and RAM 1212,including an operating system 1230, one or more application programs1232, other program modules 1234 and program data 1236. All or portionsof the operating system, applications, modules, and/or data can also becached in the RAM 1212. It is to be appreciated that the application canbe implemented with various commercially available operating systems orcombinations of operating systems.

A user can enter commands and information into the computer 1202 throughone or more wired/wireless input devices, e.g., a keyboard 1238 and apointing device, such as a mouse 1240. Other input devices (not shown)may include a microphone, an IR remote control, a joystick, a game pad,a stylus pen, touch screen, or the like. These and other input devicesare often connected to the processing unit 1204 through an input deviceinterface 1242 that is coupled to the system bus 1208, but can beconnected by other interfaces, such as a parallel port, an IEEE 1394serial port, a game port, a USB port, an IR interface, etc.

A monitor 1244 or other type of display device is also connected to thesystem bus 1208 via an interface, such as a video adapter 1246. Inaddition to the monitor 1244, a computer typically includes otherperipheral output devices (not shown), such as speakers, printers, etc.

The computer 1202 may operate in a networked environment using logicalconnections via wired and/or wireless communications to one or moreremote computers, such as a remote computer(s) 1248. The remotecomputer(s) 1248 can be a workstation, a server computer, a router, apersonal computer, portable computer, microprocessor-based entertainmentappliance, a peer device or other common network node, and typicallyincludes many or all of the elements described relative to the computer1202, although, for purposes of brevity, only a memory/storage device1250 is illustrated. The logical connections depicted includewired/wireless connectivity to a local area network (LAN) 1252 and/orlarger networks, e.g., a wide area network (WAN) 1254. Such LAN and WANnetworking environments are commonplace in offices and companies, andfacilitate enterprise-wide computer networks, such as intranets, all ofwhich may connect to a global communications network, e.g., theInternet.

When used in a LAN networking environment, the computer 1202 isconnected to the local network 1252 through a wired and/or wirelesscommunication network interface or adapter 1256. The adapter 1256 mayfacilitate wired or wireless communication to the LAN 1252, which mayalso include a wireless access point disposed thereon for communicatingwith the wireless adapter 1256.

When used in a WAN networking environment, the computer 1202 can includea modem 1258, or is connected to a communications server on the WAN1254, or has other means for establishing communications over the WAN1254, such as by way of the Internet. The modem 1258, which can beinternal or external and a wired or wireless device, is connected to thesystem bus 1208 via the serial port interface 1242. In a networkedenvironment, program modules depicted relative to the computer 1202, orportions thereof, can be stored in the remote memory/storage device1250. It will be appreciated that the network connections shown areexemplary and other means of establishing a communications link betweenthe computers can be used.

The computer 1202 is operable to communicate with any wireless devicesor entities operatively disposed in wireless communication, e.g., aprinter, scanner, desktop and/or portable computer, portable dataassistant, communications satellite, any piece of equipment or locationassociated with a wirelessly detectable tag (e.g., a kiosk, news stand,restroom), and telephone. This includes at least Wi-Fi and Bluetooth™wireless technologies. Thus, the communication can be a predefinedstructure as with a conventional network or simply an ad hoccommunication between at least two devices.

Wi-Fi, or Wireless Fidelity, allows connection to the Internet from acouch at home, a bed in a hotel room, or a conference room at work,without wires. Wi-Fi is a wireless technology similar to that used in acell phone that enables such devices, e.g., computers, to send andreceive data indoors and out; anywhere within the range of a basestation. Wi-Fi networks use radio technologies called IEEE 802.11 (a, b,g, etc.) to provide secure, reliable, fast wireless connectivity. AWi-Fi network can be used to connect computers to each other, to theInternet, and to wired networks (which use IEEE 802.3 or Ethernet).Wi-Fi networks operate in the unlicensed 2.4 and 5 GHz radio bands, atan 11 Mbps (802.11a) or 54 Mbps (802.11b) data rate, for example, orwith products that contain both bands (dual band), so the networks canprovide real-world performance similar to the basic 10BaseT wiredEthernet networks used in many offices.

What has been described above includes examples of the application. Itis, of course, not possible to describe every conceivable combination ofcomponents or methodologies for purposes of describing the subjectapplication, but one of ordinary skill in the art may recognize thatmany further combinations and permutations of the application arepossible. Accordingly, the application is intended to embrace all suchalterations, modifications and variations that fall within the spiritand scope of the appended claims. Furthermore, to the extent that theterm “includes” is used in either the detailed description or theclaims, such term is intended to be inclusive in a manner similar to theterm “comprising” as “comprising” is interpreted when employed as atransitional word in a claim.

1. A system that facilitates tracking dispersion of an invariant,comprising: a processor; a receiving component, communicatively coupledto a network and the processor, the receiving component accepts aplurality of data packets from the network; a signature learning block,communicatively coupled to the receiving component, the signaturelearning block concurrently tracks an occurrence frequency rate and adispersion criterion of a plurality of invariants associated with asubset of the data packets; the signature learning block employs: afirst level dispersion table component that filters the plurality ofinvariants having a minimal level of dispersion based upon theoccurrence frequency rate and the dispersion criterion; and a secondlevel dispersion table that tracks a spreading behavior of the filteredinvariants; and the signature learning block reports one of theplurality of invariants based upon the occurrence frequency and thedispersion criteria as a function of a dynamic threshold.
 2. The systemof claim 1, further comprising a direct bitmap counter that establishesthe occurrence frequency rate and the dispersion criterion.
 3. Thesystem of claim 1, further comprising a scalable bitmap counter thatestablishes the spreading behavior as a function of the occurrencefrequency rate and the dispersion criterion.
 4. The system of claim 1,the dispersion criterion defines a plurality of hosts associated withthe subset of invariants.
 5. The system of claim 1, the signaturelearning block employs a two stage content dispersion table thatfacilitates concurrent tracking of the occurrence frequency rate and thedispersion criterion of a subset of the plurality of invariants.
 6. Thesystem of claim 5, the two stage content dispersion table comprises afirst level dispersion table that filters a prevalent signature basedupon a threshold of dispersion and a second level dispersion table thattracks a spreading behavior of the prevalent signature.
 7. The system ofclaim 6, the second level dispersion table reports the prevalentsignature to a director as a function of a dynamic threshold.
 8. Thesystem of claim 1, further comprising: a database to facilitateidentification of the plurality of invariants, the database including: afirst table that includes a first set of columns that representdispersion criterion that corresponds to a first plurality ofinvariants; and a second table that includes a second set of columnsthat represent dispersion criterion that corresponds to a subset of thefirst plurality of invariants derived as a function of a dispersionthreshold.
 9. The system of claim 8, wherein the signature learningblock accesses the database to derive the plurality of invariants fromthe subset of the first plurality of invariants.
 10. A router thatmonitors an invariant, comprising: a receiving component that accepts adata packet; a component that concurrently tracks an occurrencefrequency rate and dispersion criterion of an invariant within the datapacket; the component employs: a first level dispersion table componentthat filters invariants having a minimal level of dispersion based uponthe occurrence frequency rate and the dispersion criterion; and a secondlevel dispersion table that tracks a spreading behavior of the filteredinvariants; and the component reports the invariant based upon theoccurrence frequency and the dispersion criteria as a function of adynamic threshold.
 11. A method for monitoring an invariant, comprising:tracking, using at least one of one or more processors, an occurrencefrequency of the invariant; concurrently tracking, using at least one ofthe one or more processors, a dispersion criteria of the invariant; theprocessors employs, a first level dispersion table component thatfilters invariants having a minimal level of dispersion based upon theoccurrence frequency rate and the dispersion criterion, and a secondlevel dispersion table that tracks a spreading behavior of the filteredinvariants; and reporting the invariant based upon the occurrencefrequency and the dispersion criteria as a function of a dynamicthreshold.
 12. The method of claim 11, further comprising locating theinvariant within at least one of a packet header and a packet payload ofa received data packet of arbitrary length.
 13. The method of claim 12,further comprising selecting the invariant as a function of time,protocol and packet.
 14. The method of claim 11, further comprising,setting a desired length for the invariant.
 15. The method of claim 11,further comprising white listing the invariant based upon the frequencyand the dispersion criteria as a function of the dynamic threshold. 16.The method of claim 11, further comprising establishing a signature forthe invariant; the signature facilitates tracking of the frequency andthe dispersion criteria.
 17. The method of claim 16, further comprisingcombining signatures of at least two invariants to establish thesignature.
 18. The method of claim 11, the acts of tracking includetracking at a line rate in excess of 5 Gbps.
 19. A system thatfacilitates tracking dispersion of an invariant, comprising: a systembus to communicatively couple system components; a means for receiving aplurality of data packets, the means for receiving communicativelycoupled to the system bus; a means for concurrently analyzing occurrencefrequency rate and a dispersion criterion of invariants associated witha subset of the data packets, the means for analyzing communicativelycoupled to the system bus; and a means for employing: a first leveldispersion table component that filters invariants having a minimallevel of dispersion based upon the occurrence frequency rate and thedispersion criterion; and a second level dispersion table that tracks aspreading behavior of the filtered invariants; and a means for reportingan invariant based upon the occurrence frequency and the dispersioncriteria as a function of a dynamic threshold.
 20. A computer-readablestorage medium including instructions, which when executed by one ormore processors cause the one or more processors to: track, using atleast one of one or more processors, an occurrence frequency of aninvariant; concurrently track, using at least one of the one or moreprocessors, a dispersion criteria of the invariant; the processorsemploy, a first level dispersion table component that filters invariantshaving a minimal level of dispersion based upon the occurrence frequencyrate and the dispersion criterion, and a second level dispersion tablethat tracks a spreading behavior of the filtered invariants; and reportthe invariant based upon the occurrence frequency and the dispersioncriteria as a function of a dynamic threshold.
 21. The computer-readablestorage medium of claim 20, wherein the instructions cause the one ormore processors further to: white list the invariant based upon thefrequency and the dispersion criteria as a function of the dynamicthreshold.
 22. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 20, whereinthe instructions cause the one or more processors further to: establisha signature for the invariant; the signature facilitates tracking of thefrequency and the dispersion criteria.
 23. The computer-readable storagemedium of claim 20, wherein the instructions cause the one or moreprocessors further to: locate the invariant within at least one of apacket header and a packet payload of a received data packet ofarbitrary length.